This story kinda went by the wayside, as I was prepping to move at the time (they didn't know this, but I was quite ready to burn bridges).
I was elected to the Board of Directors of Quote-Unquote, Inc. in the early part of the millennium. By 2005, I was pretty much a 'senior' board member, and I was part of the 'Executive Committee'.
Our Executive Director, Steve Ranieri, had been bringing the troubles with one of the employees to meetings for *months* (the lead technician). He'd been telling us how all the shortcomings in the station were his fault, and he was a lazy, good-for-nothing goldbricker.
As a 'director' I felt I should let him do his job, but I was not convinced, personally (I was awaiting 'evidence').
He fired the technician, and one of the access producers did the kind of follow-up that a Board of Directors member should do. Her show started asking "why" in a number of instances that I should have, but didn't.
I was brought into this (made aware of the show) by being called into an 'Executive Committee' meeting in which the topic of discussion was how we were going to remove her right to broadcast her show.
My opinion on this matter was that it was her right to free speech that we were discussing, and that I'd not vote on restricting it.
I was in the minority, and Marvin Gladstone and Rick Loray were in the majority. Her free speech right was quashed.
Now (I was curious) and did the due diligence that I should have done prior. I watched her show, and I went to the fired tech and I asked some of the questions that she was asking on the show.
I came to the conclusion that I had witnessed (in addition to *obvious* civil rights questions) a simple character assassination. The man who was maligned for not accomplishing tasks had never known he was assigned these tasks, essentially.
I should say in addition that I've know the technician since 1994, and I've never doubted his word. I've known the ED since he came on board on that station, and I've never actually 'trusted' him (seemed like a slimy sonabich from the get-go, actually).
The question of the restricted producer was addressed by another of the employees at the station, who also supported the rights of the producers to say what they want on the station.
*HE* was brought up on charges and summarily dismissed from the station.
For bringing the issue to light, *I* was brought up on 'charges' (that I was a lousy Secretary, and didn't turn in my minutes on time).
Now, in most BoD scenarios, that might be reason to dump one from the position of secretary, but *not* to be ejected from the board.
And it turned out that these were entirely fictitious charges. I've got Marvin Gladstone (the accuser) on tape admitting that I'd actually turned in all outstanding minutes that I was required to turn in.
Yet, even though the charges were bogus, they still held a vote on it, and *still* dumped me from the board.
Then, they fired the employee who spoke up (the next month).
A number of my friends who still produce shows have had 'trouble' working there since. A few have stopped using Q-U as a studio because of the lack of production quality. We can't be sure, but it certainly looks as if they just turn stuff off on shows they "don't like" so it doesn't work/look right.
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